Wrestling

Twito Remains in Hunt for First National Title; Semifinals Next

Mar 11, 2011

LaCROSSE, Wis. – Friday's action has concluded at the La Crosse Center in La Crosse, Wis., which is the site of the 2011 NCAA Division III Wrestling Championships. Senior Dan Twito of the United States Merchant Marine Academy is still in contention for a national title, while Vincent Renaut and Judd Connell remain in the hunt for third-place finishes.

125-DIVISION: Senior Jordan Alfaro (Fayetteville, N.C.) fell to Luther College's #7 Daniel Mendoza in the second round by a 9-6 decision. Alfaro, a returning All-American, then went on to defeat Max Cohen of Ithaca College in the third-place bracket (3-2 dec.), before losing to Brandon Gauthier of Rhode Island College by a 5-2 decision, TB1.

149-DIVISION: Junior Martin Bell (Eaton Rapids, Mich.) lost in second-round action to #1 Isaac Dukes of Case Western Reserve University by a decision of 10-4. Bell then lost to Cameryn Brady of Manchester College in the third-place bracket (9-3 dec.).

157-DIVISION: #8 Senior Dan Twito (Cedar Falls, Iowa) defeated Troy Sterling of SUNY Cortland in second-round action by a 3-1 decision. Twito advanced to battle Chris Burdge of Centenary College, who moved on to face Twito by upsetting and defeating the #1-seed in the 157-pound weight class. In that quarterfinals clash, Twito bested Burdge by a 3-2 decision and moves on to the semifinals where he will wrestle #5 Justin Berns of Concordia College-Moorhead tomorrow.

165-DIVISION: #4 Senior Vincent Renaut (Plymouth, Mass.) bested Josef Waples of St. Olaf College in the second round by a 14-4 major decision. Next, the defending national champion squared off against #5 Luke Miller from Ohio Northern in the quarterfinals. The Plymouth native fell to Miller by a 6-0 decision and unfortunately will not receive a shot to repeat his national championship. In the third-place bracket, Renaut defeated Adam Weber of Wartburg (8-6 dec.) and moves on to battle James Myers of Olivet College.

184-DIVISION: Senior Scott Lowe (Euclid, Ohio) dropped his second-round match with #1 Phil Moenkedick of Concordia College-Moorhead (fall, 6:14). In the third-place bracket, Lowe beat Andy Jenkins of Mount Union by a decision of 10-6. The Euclid native then moved on to face #6 Alex Martocello from York College, but lost (6-2 dec.).